Report shows fourth-grade students in N.J. public, charter schools have same passing rates

William Perlman/The Star-LedgerStudents leave school at the Oliver Street School on Tuesday. A new report shows that some Newark public schools aren't so bad, like Oliver Street Elementary School, which does really well on fourth-grade tests.

Some public schools in Newark are among the best in the city, performing as well as charters in certain areas, according to the annual Kids Count survey to be released today.

Comparing test scores and demographic data, the report found public schools had the same passing rates on average as charters at the fourth grade level, thanks to a decade of significant academic gains.

The data appears to contradict the prevailing assumption about the consistent high quality of charter schools and their reputation as a panacea. It also belies the rhetoric from politicians and educators that Newark schools are uniformly bad.

The survey results show a startling range in quality among both types of schools in the district, with some passing rates ranging from 19 percent to 100 percent.

"We must identify what is working in the successful schools — charters and districts alike — and replicate those elements in all Newark schools," said Cecilia Zalkind, the executive director of the Advocates for Children in New Jersey, which published the report.

Results of the study come at a crucial time for New Jersey’s schools. Gov. Chris Christie, who recently described Newark schools as "absolutely disgraceful," has called for a rigorous expansion of charter schools. At the same time, Newark has embarked on a $100 million reform effort bankrolled by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

School

4th Grade Math

4th Grade Language

8th Grade Math

8th Grade Language

Abington Ave

90

79

85

88

Alexander St

56

41

Ann St

81

71

69

81

Avon Ave

19

12

33

Belmont Runyon

33

26

Bragaw Ave

37

26

42

56

Branch Brook H.

65

52

Burnet St

27

31

Camden Middle

27

42

Broadway E.S.

47

26

Burnet St

46

24

Camden Street E.S.

47

41

Chancellor Ave

18

36

38

59

Cleveland

55

18

49

57

Dayton St

28

19

39

Discovery Charter School

65

55

64

71

Dr E Alma Flagg

39

12

38

42

Dr William H Horton

41

26

25

59

Eighteenth Ave

38

12

22

44

Elliott Street E.S.

61

41

Fifteenth Ave

46

21

47

First Avenue

67

49

49

72

Fourteenth Avenue E.S.

80

62

Franklin E.S.

82

56

George Washington Carver

30

22

18

37

Gray Charter School

74

51

92

88

Greater Newark Charter School

67

74

Harriet Tubman

82

41

Hawkins St

39

39

45

65

Hawthorne Ave

15

15

19

48

Ivy Hill Elementary

30

38

Lady Liberty Academy Charter School

53

38

43

57

Lafayette St

73

55

87

88

Lincoln

43

38

Louise A. Spencer

53

42

30

43

Luis Munoz Marin Middle

59

66

Madison Elem.

58

42

Maple Ave School

31

27

22

57

Maria L. Varisco-Rogers

41

22

39

65

Marion P. Thomas Charter School

45

30

71

80

Martin Luther King Jr

38

29

29

Mckinley

65

33

46

53

Miller St

55

45

31

44

Mt Vernon

65

56

43

73

New Horizons Community Charter School

50

40

Newton St

49

27

16

26

North Star Academy Charter School

96

99

Oliver St

93

82

61

61

Peshine Ave

25

20

14

30

Quitman Community School

18

20

38

41

Rafael Hernandez School

30

23

30

42

Renaissance Academy

19

Ridge St

76

53

73

84

Robert Treat Academy Charter School

90

80

98

94

Science High School

92

94

Roberto Clemente E.S.

89

80

Roseville Avenue E.S.

79

68

South Seventeenth St

50

38

54

52

South St

34

28

Speedway Avenue E.S.

46

42

Sussex Ave

71

48

44

53

Team Academy Charter School

56

72

Thirteenth Ave

21

16

25

61

University Heights Charter School

11

11

University High

95

00

Vailsburg Middle School

27

45

William H Brown Academy

23

42

Wilson Ave

76

40

68

77

Roughly 5,300 students in Newark attend charter schools, accounting for a quarter of the state’s charter school enrollment, the report said. There are also nearly 6,600 parents on charter school waiting lists.

But at least at the elementary school (fourth grade) level, charters do not perform much better than their district counterparts, the report said.

In the 2008-09 school year, students in charter and district schools passed their math tests at the same rate — 54 percent. In the language arts category, the difference was miniscule: 41 percent of charter school students passed, compared to 40 percent in district schools.

But charter school advocates quickly noted students in the eighth grade performed much better than district schools.

"(The 8th grade scores) are critical because they demonstrate that charters are playing a key role in preparing Newark students for high school and college," said Mashea Ashton, the CEO of the Newark Charter School Fund.

Only 56 percent of district eighth graders passed their language arts tests, compared to 78 percent in charter schools, according to the report.

The pattern was the same in math: 69 percent of charter school students passed, compared to 42 percent of district students.

But in both the fourth and eighth grade levels, students in district and charter schools performed lower than the statewide average, the report said.

In addition to the wide disparity between public and charter schools at the eighth grade level, the survey also found a wide range in quality within the individual types of schools.

At the fourth grade level, students in the best public and charter schools had a passing rate of roughly 80 percent in language arts tests. In the worst schools, which included one charter, the passing rate was barely above 10 percent.

Education experts said the data show charter schools do not automatically deliver success.

"Charter school advocates over-exaggerate the successes of good charter schools, but underplay the significant number of failing charter schools," said Alan Sadovnik, co-director of the Newark Schools Research Collaborative.

But Derrell Bradford, a school choice advocate and head of Excellent Education for Everyone, questioned some of the study’s methods.

"Charter schools aren’t a magic bullet, and we know that," he said. "But the important difference is ... we can close down a poorly performing charter school. We can’t do that easily with district schools. And none of these studies talks about that."

The report also notes the socioeconomic challenges education officials face in Newark.

One in three Newark children lives in poverty, a figure that has not budged in the last 10 years and is nearly three times the statewide average, the report said. Newark families with children also earn $50,000 less per year than the average New Jersey family.

Gov. Chris Christie on his continued support for charter schoolsOn Thursday, governor Chris Christie made his 6th town hall stop, this time in Hoboken to discuss his continued efforts to create more charter schools in New Jersey. His talks on education continued in Hoboken, as Christie engaged in conversation with Geoffrey Canada, a founder of a nonprofit group that supports education reform. (Video by Michael Monday/The Star-Ledger)